As close to The Band as we're likely to get at Keswick

Making a special appearance at the Keswick Theatre on Saturday, Nov. 24, Jimmy Vivino (from the Fab Faux and band leader for Conan O’Brien) and Garth Hudson (founding member of The Band) will present “Songs of The Band” — a continuation of The Band’s profound musical legacy.

Drawing from the first four albums of The Band’s extensive catalogue, as well as a few tunes from “The Basement Tapes,” “Songs of The Band” will present the group’s earliest music in its purest form. Without the large horn section that became a staple of their later work, this show will just feature some guitar, bass, piano, organ and drums.

Vivino is certainly excited to be sharing the stage with Hudson, the definition of a living legend.

“Garth Hudson is a national treasure,” said Vivino during a phone interview discussing the concert. “And I am on a personal mission to boost that awareness. He is one of the most incredible musicians I’ve ever worked with and I’ve worked with a lot of musicians. I’ve just never encountered anyone of Garth’s stature, and if we don’t get out there, people aren’t going to hear him.

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For Vivino, though, there’s a lot more to the equation. A student of every facet of North American music, Vivino said The Band was one of the most influential groups of the 20th century.

“They were the greatest American band ever,” he said matter-of-factly. “The Band changed English music. They made people like Eric Clapton and George Harrison turn and take notice. Before they came along, Americana just did not exist as a genre. This is the most important American music ever made in my opinion.”

Vivino wants to make it known, though, that this isn’t a tribute band. All of the performers have roots in The Band, whether as founding members or close friends. Bringing together the likes of Vivino and Hudson, Sister Maud Hudson, Jim Weider, Randy Ciarlante and Byron Isaacs, the concert will showcase some of the greatest talent ever to share the stage with recently-deceased icon Levon Helm.

“This is a family thing for us,” said Vivino. “I can’t stress enough that Garth Hudson isn’t tooling around in some tribute band. He was there. He was a founding member of The Band. And everyone playing with us has a deep connection to this music.”

And although they’ve done this a couple of times in the past, this isn’t an ongoing tour or anything like that. Chances are, this one-off stop at the Keswick could be audiences only opportunity to see a spectacle such as this live.

Vivino, who is a frequent visitor to the Keswick with the Fab Faux, said the Glenside theater is the perfect venue for a gig such as this one.

“They book a lot of great stuff there,” he said. “It’s one of the really cool theaters. I’ve been doing shows there for over 10 years. There’s a really cool community there in Glenside — it’s close to the city, but you also get that suburban crowd that might otherwise not make the trip. The theater has a sense of cool shows and the people are hip to what’s going on out there.”

And even though it’s Thanksgiving weekend, Vivino doesn’t think that should stop people from coming out and seeing this once-in-a-lifetime spectacle.

“Garth Hudson is a wizard,” he said. “He needs to be heard and seen. He’s an unbelievable force in American music. To me, this is really important. is an American institution and this is a chance for people who haven’t seen him in awhile, or who’ve never seen him, to come and check him out.

“This is, in a purer sense, the way The Band started out,” added Vivino. “We decided to do it stripped down the way I first saw the band — as five musicians — and not have all the horns and all that stuff. This is really the seed and the root of the way things started.

“If you get a chance to skip out on the family thing, come over and check out our family thing,” concluded Vivino. “It should be a really great time.”